2013 SRO @ the Library

Below what temperature is the emission of light during a chemical reaction considered chemiluminescence?

What are animals’ bioluminescent organs called?

What four chemicals come together in specialized cells in the abdomen of a firefly to produce light?

24 middle school students from Lee & Charlotte Counties participating in FGCU’s Annual Summer Research Opportunity (SRO) visited us today hoping the librarian would shed some light on how to use a University library – so they can complete their scavenger hunt for answers to chemiluminescence & bioluminescence questions! Congratulations to all the groups – great work everyone!

Fun (and a lot of learning) was had by all!

In this phase of the program, students learn how the library can facilitate and legitimize their research through the use of authoritative scholarly sources. With the guidance of graduate assistants, team leaders, the science librarian, and staff, the students learned how to locate the sources needed through the online catalog and article searches, and then how to retrieve an item from the library collections. The students were enthusiastic, excited and fascinated to see what an academic library has to offer.

The Whitaker Center for STEM Education sponsors the two week event for middle school students and is staffed by FGCU faculty and Graduate Student Assistants. These students must have participated in the Thomas Alva Edison Regional Science Fair, prepared an application, and are chosen to participate in this hands-on experience of collaboration on a complete and genuine research problem from hypothesis generation and initial design, through field and laboratory data collection, and culminating in data analysis and interpretation.